Sangeetha Liyanapathirana
Manager - Health, Hygiene and Sustainability at Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts; 2023 PATA Face of the Future
Sangeetha Liyanapathirana is currently responsible for managing Sustainability, the Corporate Social Responsibility activities of the hotel, Health, Safety, Environmental Safety, Legal Affairs, and Government Relations at Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo. In addition to the vast role with Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo, she also plays a lead role in Health and Safety based communications for Cinnamon Hotels and Resorts.
Sangeetha joined Cinnamon Hotels and Resorts in 2016 as a Health and Hygiene Executive of Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo. Ever since, she was recognised for her remarkable commitment with an enhanced role including leading the sustainability avenue for the hotel and two promotions leading to becoming Manager – Health, Hygiene and Sustainability for Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo in a short period of time. Sangeetha is now an IRCA certified Lead Auditor for ISO 14001, ISO 45001, ISO 9001 and FSSC 22000 standards.
Sangeetha leads the way with her enthusiasm in CSR, and sustainability related activities and initiatives including volunteerism. One of her greatest passions is seeing children as the future of sustainable world. Her enthusiasm to educate the future generation on how a sustainable future can bring about their own growth and the country’s betterment is recognised as inspiring amongst her business unit. She has been instrumental in curating many awareness sessions for secondary and tertiary level students who aspire to be the next generation of hoteliers. Currently she is working with John Keells Foundation on the ‘Pasal Diriya’ programme which is intended to bridge the gap while building a sustainable model to reduce child malnutrition, ensure higher school attendance and create a positive impact on overall learning. She recently won a Silver Award for her volunteer activities from John Keells Holdings, the parent company of Cinnamon Hotels and Resorts, and Sri Lanka’s largest diversified conglomerate.
Sangeetha earned a B.Sc. - Biotechnology from Bangalore University, India, where she won best student of her batch and is currently reading for an M.Sc. – Food Science and Technology from Peradeniya University, Sri Lanka. Apart from this she has studied Tourism and Hospitality management at the Open University of Sri Lanka and Leadership and Management at NSBM Green University, Sri Lanka. Her current research initiative includes methodologies of creating a canned fruit product fermented by Ceylon Arrack. This project aims at reviving cottage industries in Sri Lanka, while also giving local produce a sustainable international platform.
